Creamy Potato Cheese Soup

the.best.soup.evar

if you think i'm exaggerating, you, my friend, are WRONG. this is seriously the tastiest damn soup i've ever had. i based it off of this recipe at allrecipes.com. but then i changed so much of it, i don't think it's anywhere near the same recipe anymore.

Best Creamy Potato Cheese Soup EVAR

Ingredients

* 1/4 cup butter
* 1 medium yellow onion, diced
* 1 clove garlic, minced
* 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/2 - 2 cups chardonnay
* 2 large carrots, diced
* 4 stalks celery, diced
* salt and pepper to taste
* 4 cups chicken stock
* 2 cups water
* 5 pounds yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced
* 1 bay leaf
* 3 lb package of sour cream
* 3.5 cup shredded cheese
* 1-2 cups milk

Directions

1. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic in butter until translucent. Stir in flour until smooth, then gradually stir in chardonnay, carrots, celery, salt, and pepper. Add chicken stock, and bring to a low boil.
2. Place potatoes in dutch oven, with the bay leaf on top. Pour heated vegetable mixture onto potatoes, and add water to cover potatoes with an inch of liquid.
3. Vent lid on dutch oven and cook over low-medium heat until potatoes are tender, approximately 1-2 hours, stirring occasionally.
4. Remove bay leaf. Use blender, stick blender, or food processor to smooth the texture of half of the soup, if desired, and return to pot. Stir in sour cream, and add cheese 1 cup at a time, stirring until it is all melted. Add milk to achieve desired thickness.


**Optional: Before starting the onions and garlic, cook 6-8 slices of turkey bacon in butter. Remove bacon & chop finely. Return most of the bacon to saute pan when adding liquid, saving the remainder for garnish.

(makes about 18 servings)

um, lemme see if i can get a pic of the leftovers before they get stowed away, but the soup's appearance doesn't do it justice.

and i should probably add that i used 2 cups of cheddar, 1 cup of mexican, and 1/2 cup of the incredibly delectable and creamy irish cheddar from costco. if i could have used more of that, i would, but i'd already used a lot of it for the stuffed mushrooms a couple weeks back. ;)